Dr. Andreas Schäfer

Responsible and accountable for QIAGEN´s key business initiative in Next Generation Sequencing: The GeneReader Sample-to-Insight system, comprising all workflow steps from sample stabilization and extraction to bioinformatics supported generation of actionable insights for a variety of clinically relevant assay panels.

Leading a Franchise, responsible and accountable for worldwide business (>180$M) related to QIAGEN´s major automated molecular diagnostic system, including instruments, software, disposables as well as pre-analytical and analytical technologies and bioinformatics solutions, respectively. With a yearly budget of >20M$ the team is developing and implementing business strategies and roadmaps, and is ensuring revenue targets are met in close collaboration with regional marketing and commercial operations.

Management of QIAGEN´s Women´s Health R&D portfolio 2011-2012: Head of North American Research and Development department in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Department comprised 90 FTEs plus external groups, and consisted of assay development, pilot plant, system engineering, and system integration groups, respectively. Revised R&D strategy, product roadmap and managed restructuring and recruiting efforts.

Head of System Solutions Department, comprising competence areas of system integration, software and bioinformatics development for QIAGEN´s automation platforms, development of disposables and consumables, usability engineering, and automation of life science and molecular diagnostics applications, respectively. Responsible for a development budget of 15 M$ and 80 internal and 40 external employees. Member of QIAGEN´s Senior Management (QSM).

Management of major R&D Programs in the areas Microarrays and Automation. Responsible project manager for design and development of QIAGEN´s award-winning QIAcube instrument with more than 10M$ revenue contribution in the first year after market introduction.

Expansion of the system integration group to an interdisciplinary expert team with up to 40 employees that worked across different subsidiaries on several major system developments, like BioRobot MDx, BioRobot 3000, BioRobot EZ1, or BioRobot Universal product lines, respectively.

Project Management of system development projects. Developed QIAGEN´s first system for molecular diagnostics applications: BioRobot 9604. Founded QIAGEN´s System Integration Group and built expertise around integration of biological applications with software, disposables and instruments to automated products. Led team of up to 10 employees.

Development and automation of new and innovative sample preparation methods for nucleic acids and proteins on QIAGEN´s BioRobot platforms.

Scientific work in the context of the BRIDGE Program of the EU. Worked in industry collaborations and studied horizontal gene transfer between non-related microbes in natural environments Published multiple papers and patents, and applied for grants.

Genetics of amino acid producing microorganisms. Published several papers and patents. Member of "Graduiertenkolleg Cellular Mechanisms of biotechnological Processes" Award of "Promotionsstipendium der Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes"

Activities and Societies: Developed vectors and gene transfer methods for the genetic manipulation of Corynebacteria. Published papers. Scholarship by the "Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes"